Friday, May 5, 2017

Cause for Paws – Rescue Me

Some
of acoustic music’s most respected and gifted artists have come together with
Blue Night Records for the creation of Rescue Me! It is truly a “cause for
paws.” From its inception, the project has had one driving purpose: to support
the furry creatures who so enhance our lives with love and loyalty. Now, at
last, that purpose has materialized with energy and joy as a 12-track
compilation album of tender tunes that honor our four-legged friends. Rescue
Me! is a heartfelt collection of Americana music featuring songs that are
thought-provoking, uplifting, engaging, and downright funny. These compositions
are mostly family oriented but do occasionally get into more mature style of
humor.

This CD doesn’t waste any time, so getting right to it, the compilation kicks
off with a song about a cat with a job. Naturally it earned the appropriate
title of “Barn Cat.” It has a light percussive effect behind some excellent
guitar work and nice harmony vocals weaved in and out of the story. You’ll like
this cat, if Americana, folk and even some country is your thing. It delivers. It’s
by Mary Ann Kennedy. So does “Possum And Pearl” deliver just as much with its
singer/songwriter aim, and bluegrass twist. It has a swirling ring to it if you
like fiddles and banjos. Penned by Kathy Chiavola from the CD “Somehow” and it
sets well among these other humorously poetic, low key tracks.

With “Our Cats” things get smoking with a classy acappella song featuring Cindy
Mangsen and two other voices. You can’t miss this because it’s up there with
what makes this CD work so well. Good storytelling. This is a cool way to liven
up the whole collection of funny if yet somehow interesting music. These are
veteran artists, so that comes as really no surprise either. They’re all good
at what they do. On “Get A Dog” you get that command presence, even from a
female vocal, to replace the bad with the good, and go out and get a dog
instead. The CD starts to get better as it goes, and the rest is pretty much
gravy.

There are songs with humor, as pointed out, but there’s also some melancholy
stuff to even it out. “My Old Cat” by Heidi Muller from her CD “Giving Back” is
a classic style vocal, not unlike Brenda Lee or someone from that era. It’s
also very well done and worth its recommendation. Just about anyone can enjoy
that kind of thing, young or old. And “My Best Friend” by Mark Weems is a love
song to his pet. You can’t make this stuff up, yet it is so precise and almost
as serious as it is not. The piano on this is what really brings out the best
in it. You manage to feel for him by the time it’s over.

But that’s not all the piano you get, as the next number razzle dazzle’s the
ears. It’s the cerebral “Kitty Kitty” by Ashley Joe Farmer, with its tales of
mischief and laughter. The vocals here are of that classic style, heard a few
times throughout, but the music backing this is light and bouncy with a hook
that won’t quit. It’s an up-tempo boiler with cute lyrics. And it goes well
with “Why, Why, Why” even though it is country, as it contrasts with it so
well, you get the best of both worlds. This is by Aidan Quinn and Christian
Stay. It features a nice vocal duet about the theory that dogs look like their
people and vice versa. And that sums up the titles question.

And it gets more personal on “Catitude” with a song about a lover being
replaced by a cat once they left. This is one of the funnier arranged vocals
offered, but it’s not alone. It just rings of déjà vu because I’m sure a lot of
people have wound up this way a time or two in life. And Effron White did a
fine job performing it in the studio, which is vastly becoming a lost art form.
And the rest floats along with such beauties as “I Miss The Dog” by Jamie
Anderson, with its generally sad tale but uplifting string with mandolin and
two part harmony vocals. “The Best Dog” which such a close title to the
previous that it’s easy to fool but not when you hear it. It’s just another
track that makes you want to hear the CD “Home Sweet Home.”And last, but not least, is “The Kitty Ditty”
about cat behaviors, which often adapt from our own. This is a solid closer
that goes out on a good note and doesn’t leave a sad feeling. It leaves a
feeling of wanting to buy it and donate to cause for paws.

About Me

Student at University of Oregon. Persuing a degree in Jornalism and Marketing. Writing Intern for Indie Music Media LLC based out of Seattle, WA. I enjoy writing music reviews that are informative, honest and positive.